Germanic Studies

The Germanic Studies collection is rich in breadth, depth, and scope, covering literature, history, film, media, business, music, politics, philosophy, science, museum studies, and more. The collection represents all countries and regions where German, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, and Icelandic are or have been spoken.

Collected since the early nineteenth century, our German language collection is one of largest in North America. Strengths include primary and secondary works on literature, local histories, scholarly journals, and comprehensive editions of works by notable figures, as well as periodicals and audio and video recordings. 

Materials supporting Scandanavian studies, including volumes in native languages, cover the respectives countries, as well as the indigenous Sámi people. Particular focuses include Vikings and medieval Scandinavia, World War II, and “New Scandinavia,” including multiculturalism and the European Union relationship.

Netherlandic studies materials, including Dutch language volumes, have been collected primarily since the end of World War II, but cover all aspects and periods of Dutch and Flemish history and culture.

Important related collections

Collections of relevant maps, atlases, government documents, data, images, and musical scores are available in various library locations.

The Special Collections Research Center holds:

• Publications and ephemera from German, Dutch, and Scandinavian social and political movements in the Joseph A. Labadie Collection
• One of the world’s largest collections of Dutch pamphlets and more in European history
• R. M. Myers collection of pamphlets and booklets from the Weimar and Nazi periods

An extensive collection documenting the participation of German mercenaries in the American Revolutionary War is at the William L. Clements Library.